1. Unsubscribing from annoying mailing list. LIKE GTFO I AIN'T GOT TIME FOR YOUR SPAM MACY'S.

2. Sitting and thinking about my food and my body. What? I know, it sound weird, stay with me here. There is magic in conscious action. Particularly when it comes to food. I always recommend that my clients eat undistracted, don't watch t.v. or look at your phone or respond to emails. Just eat. Pay attention to how your body responds, what makes you feel good and what makes you feel crappy. This also gives you time to daydream and reflect.

3. Speaking of doing one thing at a time. I LOVE DOING ONE THING AT A TIME. I don't want to stare at my phone and eat a snack while unzipping my backpack and crossing the street. You can learn a lot when you do one thing at a time.

4. Reading before I go to sleep. GAME CHANGER. I fall asleep and stay asleep! If I read before bed vs. look at my phone before bed my night is totally different. I don't toss and turn and I wake up feeling well rested. And like, learning, you get to learn stuff when you read which is also cool (a few of my favorites are Eat to Live, The Power of Habit & You Are Here).

5. Spending less time on my phone. HANDS OFF HOMEGIRL. Reaching for my phone has become so habitual dare I say it's nearly an unconscious act (and that's terrifying). I don't need to check my email or scroll through Instagram all the time. Put. The. Phone. Down.

Sometimes people are mean. And sometimes people are mean for no fucking reason and it can be really confusing and saddening.

And people talk.

Which means when someone says something about you, it will usually get back to you.

This happened to me the other day.

And I tried to analyze it. Over analyze it. Why would they say that? What did I do that made them feel this way? How can I make them feel differently? It REALLY hurt my feelings when I heard the things being said (I think I was also PMS’ing, which didn’t help the situation), particularly because I can’t think of one damn thing I’ve done to make this person feel this way about me. I’ve had but a few conversations with them.

And why should I give a shit what they think about me? They barely know me for crying out loud, not to mention that, generally speaking, they have no impact on my life. It really shouldn't have bothered me. But it DID. It made me really sad, question myself, and feel vulnerable (and not in the good I'm-growing-so-it's-uncomfortable-but-I'll-learn-way). For a few minutes anyhow. Then I REALLY thought about it and realized, SO FUCKING WHAT.

People talk.

And some people will say mean things about you because it makes them feel better about their own situation.

But thriving, healthy, happy adults don’t walk around trying to tear others down. And you know that old saying, "Only assholes say mean things about people they barely know”, uh wait a minute, that doesn't seem right..oh yeah, “What Susie says of Sally says more of Susie than of Sally”. It’s 1000000x true. The way people talk about others is a reflection of themselves and the way they see the world.

Not everyone is going to like you, and that is ok. You will always be too much while never being enough. But the good news is that if you stay true to yourself, be as kind to others as you possibly can, and live honestly, you won’t give a damn what they say (at least not for very long). You also get the opportunity to remember that for every person trying to break you down, there are 10 others building you up. People are inherently good. Yes, even that jerk talking smack, they too are inherently good, albeit not being very nice in the moment.

This fairly odd situation that we don’t run into often as adults also reminded me that I NEVER want to make someone else feel that way. I want to lift people up. I want to show people their potential. And I want to make people feel GOOD. Life is too fucking short to be an asshole.

The people that don’t like you aren’t your people so don’t worry about them. Wish them well, be kind regardless of their words or actions, and move on with your life. You will only waste your time and your energy trying to win them over (trust me, I tried that) and there are plenty of people in the world who will give you a chance before judging you.

The ability to create a sanctuary in our minds is one of the greatest gifts we receive upon entering this world. Ever have those days where every little thing starts to irritate you even though nothing is really wrong? Although most days are light and glorious, the reality is that some days are just dark, even if you can't pinpoint exactly why. I've found that on the dark days, having my Mind-Made Gratitude Slideshow to retreat into illuminates the beauty in this world once again. I also find myself flipping through it while waiting for sleep to arrive cozied up in bed, my heart swelling with thankfulness or sometimes gently crying tears of joy.

Let's practice together: Imagine 3 different situations where either in the moment or in hindsight you were left with a profound sense of gratitude. This may take a minute, be patient, give it time, it will come to you. Then close your eyes and visualize in that exact moment, what you were seeing, feeling, the textures, the aroma, sounds, the people present, what you learned. Be as specific as possible and take your time. Don't move on to the next slide until you've fully soaked in the entire experience. After you've completed one gratitude slide, you're able to move on and continue the process with each memory.

These are 3 experiences that I often call on in my times of need:

1. The day I married my husband, he is one of the kindest, funniest and most thoughtful humans I've ever met. This day changed the trajectory of my life for the better and further solidified one of the relationships most important to me. I find myself appreciating him more and more as each day passes.

2. I was about 14 years old and really upset with my mom over something (which I'm sure was really just me being a little asshole). I ran away from home and into the quiet peacefulness of our horse barn where my horse, Moria lived. Horses have an incredibly understanding aura and a very specific scent, if you've ever been around them, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. The barn was really more of a shack, nothing fancy by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm so grateful that I had that outlet, and this beautiful, understanding creature to be by my side through my mini meltdown (as she was many times).

3. The night I got a DUI. In a drunken and drug fueled haze, my friend and I hit two other cars on the road and totaled our other friend's recently purchased car. I was 15 and didn't have a license or a permit, I barely knew how to drive a car. But we didn't kill ourselves. And more importantly we didn't kill anyone else. I thank the universe every damn day and am not sure that gratitude does my feelings for that evening justice.

As you can see, not all of my memories of gratitude are outright joyful, but recalling them allows me to appreciate what they offered me at that time in my life and fully enjoy where I am in this moment.

Isn't life just fucking awesome sometimes? There will literally be moments throughout the day when I'll sit back in amazement at how damn beautiful it can all be. It doesn't have to be anything big or outrageous to make me feel this way. In fact, most of the time it's the little things. So in celebration of the small stuff, here are six things that currently make me smile:

1. My big, cozy, white bed. I'm actually in it right now. I have a thing for white sheets, it keeps me sane and drives me crazy all at the same time. I always opt for bed over the couch or our desk, uhhhh is that normal? I write routines, watch my favorite YouTuber's (we'll get into that later), and make playlists... all from my big white bed. I'm not proud of it, it's just the truth.

2. (VEGAN) CHOCOLATE CHIP OATMEAL COOKIES! I miiiiigghht even eat a few of these in bed. They have about five ingredients, are totally plant-based, and are some of my favorite cookies ever! Don't worry, recipe coming soon.

3. My mom has a small lavender farm in the hills of Western Oregon where she lovingly hand-crafts a variety of lavender products. The Refreschen Mist from Lord & Lady Lavender is so perfect for setting your make-up or for cooling down after a workout, and the lip balm is amazing at keeping your lips, cuticles, and just about everything else hydrated through these dry winter months. There are no nasty chemicals in any of their products and they smell freaking amazing. Also, I don't just love these products because my mom makes them, I love them because they are the bomb.com. DUH!

4. I swear to God I used to think of myself as having thick hair. I'm not sure where it all took a turn for the worse, but let's just say I'm not too pleased with my current hair status. It's kind of curly and kind of straight, it's frizzy, and just generally difficult to manage. So when I discover another way to wear it up that isn't a ponytail, I'm pretty pleased with myself (insert smirking emoji).

5. Although I don't have great hair, admittedly, I don't have great hair habits. The one product that keeps it somewhat decent looking is this Drybar Triple Sec spray. Not only will it leave your hair smelling better than ever (even after a sweaty workout), but it adds this badass, matte texture that I am so in to.

6. That time my husband wasn't sure if cucumbers went on pizza. Like are you fucking kidding me? I live for things like this. CUCUMBERS? ON PIZZA? DEAD. Sincere, ridiculous questions like this are one of the many things that make him my favorite person ever.

G2G, grabbing my cookies and jumping back in bed.

xx

G

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